Grammy star Chris Brown serving extra jail time

Chris Brown was told to serve 131 days of a one-year sentence. Picture: Getty Images

CRAIG BROWN

GRAMMY-winning R&B singer Chris Brown will serve an additional 131 days in jail after admitting to violating the probation that resulted from his assault of former girlfriend, the pop singer Rihanna.

Brown admitted to a court in Los Angeles that he committed a crime in Washington DC last October. The judge sentenced Brown to 365 days but gave him credit for 234 days he has spent in rehab and jail.

Brown, who has been in custody since 14 March, was brought in to court shackled and wearing an over-sized orange prison suit, while his mother and several friends and supporters looked on. He was arrested in March at the rehab centre where he was being treated in California.

Whilst the exact details are not known, he was discharged from the facility for failing to comply with its rules and regulations.

Brown had been ordered to remain in rehab for anger management treatment.

By admitting in Los Angeles to wrongdoing in a Washington DC misdemeanour assault case, the 25-year-old avoided possible punishment of up to four years in jail and brought closure to a year of legal wrangling that included stints in ­rehab.

Superior Court Judge James R. Brandlin sentenced Brown to serve a year in county jail, but gave him credit for nearly eight months of time served.

The credits include time the Grammy winner has spent in rehab and jail, as well as credits for good behaviour while behind bars.

But Brown must still resolve his Washington DC case. He was arrested in the US capital last year for allegedly punching and breaking the nose of a man who jumped into a photo being taken of the singer and two fans. His Washington trial has been delayed, but attorney Mark Geragos said he expects the Los Angeles sentencing to lead to a resolution of the case there.

The singer has been held in Los Angeles County’s prison in downtown. His release will be determined by the County Sheriff’s department. Brown must also undergo therapy and random drug testing as part of his sentence. The judge said he took into account an undiagnosed mental illness and the singer’s young age when he assaulted Rihanna on the eve of the 2009 Grammy Awards.

The rehab facility where he was being treated had stated earlier this year that the singer was also being treated for bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder and past substance abuse.

Brown’s probation was also reinstated and is expected to end in January 2015.

He must also complete the rest of the community service he was sentenced in August last year after prosecutors accused him of cutting corners on the work.

Brown still must serve about 700 hours of community labour at a rate of three days a week once he is released from jail. Geragos, however, said Brown has “enjoyed” the work because it is “at a facility that has allowed to him to kind of expand his horizons”. The lawyer said that the singer was glad to have resolved the case. “We’re gratified that he was not sentenced to state prison, gratified that he’s still on probation,” he added.

“I think that Chris has learned quite a bit through this experience and I’m anxious to see how he does, as I think everybody else is.”

Brown made his mark in the music world as a teenager and, despite several brushes with the law, has been able to bounce back professionally ­after beating up his famous ex-girlfriend.

He narrowly avoided further criminal proceedings last year when, in January, it was claimed he was involved in a fight with R&B singer Frank Ocean over a car parking space outside a Hollywood recording studio.

At the time, detectives said Brown was under suspicion for punching the victim but the case was dropped after Ocean decided not to press charges.